Leaving The Past Behind: Everything I Do, Part One
by Chibi Pikapuff
Summary: This is the first part of the pre-tribe story of Jamie, the main character in my story 'Innocence'.
1. Chapter One

Disclaimer: I do not own 'The Tribe'. However all the characters in this story were created my me and therefore belong to me.

**Chapter One**

"Jamie Richardson?" the teacher said rather wearily as he glanced over at a dark haired boy sitting at the back of the class sharing a private joke with the guy sitting beside him.

"Yes sir," the boy replied, diverting his look from his friend to the teacher and wiping a smirk from his face.

"If you spent half as much time working as you did chatting to your mates you wouldn't be getting bad grades all the time." He slammed a piece of paper down onto the deck Jamie was sitting at. Scrawled across the front in big red letters was the letter 'F'. Jamie looked at it and sighed. What did it matter anyway? Having fun was much more important. He slid the essay into his bag, another one to go in the bin, he thought as he looked forward to the end of the school day. 

"So what did you get for that essay?" Jamie asked Lewis as they walked home from school together.

"A 'B'," he said proudly. Jamie halted so swiftly that Lewis was five steps ahead of him before he realised he was alone.

"B?!" he exclaimed. "Lewis, you're not going all 'teachers pet' on me are you?"

"Nah cause not," Lewis replied unconvincingly. "But my dad's getting annoyed that I keep getting low grades, so I thought I should start working harder."

"So in other words… you're going all 'teachers pet' on me." Lewis glanced at Jamie, a disgusted look appearing upon his face.

"Oh forget it!" Lewis snapped. "Maybe if you tried once in a while you could feel proud of what you'd achieved instead of having to hide your results from your parents!" Lewis looked at him once more and ran ahead, not looking back to see Jamie's confused expression. Him and Lewis had never argued before and he never imagined it would be school work that would cause them to fall out. He took in what Lewis had said about working harder. What was the point? He thought. Life was too short to worry about good grades. Of course he was upset about arguing with his best friends but if Lewis was going to turn into a geek then their friendship would have to be over. As he continued to walk home he took the essay out of his bag, tore it into pieces and dropped it in the bin.

"Hello?" Jamie shouted as he wandered into he house. "Anyone here?" He dropped his bag by the door and removed his shoes, beginning to think the house was deserted. Then he heard music. Loud, both in style and volume. It was coming from upstairs which meant that his sister, Rachel was already home. She'd been listening to that sort of music a lot lately, a way of 'venting her anger' apparently. What she had to be angry with he had no idea. 

"Rachel!!" he shouted at the top of his voice. "Turn the music down!" He didn't want to have to deal with complaining neighbours again; they always seemed to appear when his parents were out. There was no answer from upstairs, she had her music up so loud she was oblivious to his shouting. As he neared the top of the stairs he had to put his hands to his ears the music was so loud. He knocked on the door and when there was no answer he pushed the door open and entered the room. 

"Rachel, I asked you to keep the music down." She turned round to face him as he neared her. Her cheeks were wet with tears, her eyes red from crying. 

"What's wrong?" he asked sympathetically. He didn't see her crying very often and so seeing her like this worried him right away.

"Nothing," she said defensively.

"You know you can't lie to me," he replied. 

She sighed. It was true and she knew it. He knew everything. She rolled her eyes.

"I just had a bad day at school," she replied eventually. She was telling the truth, but there was no way she was going to let him know how bad it had been.

"Why?" he asked. "What happened?"

"It doesn't matter," she said. "I'll get over it."

"No you won't. Not until you tell me what it is."

"It's nothing!" she exploded. "Now stop worrying about me and concentrate on your grades!"

"How did you know about that?" he was confused, he hadn't told anyone.

"Your friend came round just before you arrived," she said bluntly.

"What did he -" he started but Rachel was already beckoning him from her room. Obviously she wanted to be alone so he backed up out of the room and closed the door. He was annoyed that he hadn't gotten anything out of Rachel, he may not care about school work but he did care about her. She would tell him, he decided. She would tell him when she was ready.


	2. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

Lewis came round later that evening to apologise. Jamie had been in the middle of his dinner when there had been a knock at the door. He didn't go to open it, he was too busy eating, he let his parents get it.

"Jamie," his mum shouted. "Lewis is at the door."

"I'm not in!" he replied. He didn't feel like another confrontation with him. But a moment later Lewis appeared in the room.

"You can't fool me that easily," he said. "I've used that trick on you too many times for you to be able to pull it off." Jamie groaned, he really wasn't in the mood.

"I just came to apologise," Lewis continued. "I had no right to act like your parents."

"You're right about that," Jamie muttered.

"So am I forgiven?" he asked.

"I don't know Lewis. I can't afford to be seen with a geek. I'm Jamie. I don't do school work."

"It won't pay off in the end you know."

"Life's too short." He repeated what had been going through his mind earlier.

"You're right about that," Lewis became solemn. "You know what my mum said to me before she died? She wished she'd gotten something more out of life. She was a bit like you, didn't do well at school, and she ended up going through jobs so quickly she didn't have time to get used to them. And they weren't well paid jobs either -" 

"You know your 'sob stories' don't work on me." 

"It's not a 'sob story, it's the truth, and I don't want you to end up the same."

"I didn't know you cared," Jamie said, a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

"Well I di er this expression was nothing compared to when his mum appeared from round the corner. His look of shock disappeared, and was replaced by one of shame.

"You heard what we said?" he guessed.

"Every d!" Lewis shouted. "But not any more, do what you like with your life!" Lewis left the house as quickly as he had come, leaving Jamie in a state of shock. Howev word," his mum said, sitting down at the table. "But it was nothing I didn't know already."

"What?" Jamie's shocked expression returned. "You knew?"

"I was hanging some clothes in your wardrobe and I came across a pile of letters addressed to me and your dad," she explained. Jamie sighed, he knew he should have disposed of them earlier.

"Are you angry?" he asked, already predicting the answer.

"Not angry, just a little disappointed that you couldn't tell us," she replied. That was not what Jamie had predicted.

"But… aren't you mad that I get into trouble a lot?"

"Maybe I should be. But I remember what my brother was like at that age. However mad your grandparents got he didn't change. So I'm not going to get angry. But I would like you to try a bit harder."

"I'll try," Jamie lied. His parents weren't mad so he had no reason to try harder.

"Thanks," his mum replied, smiling. "Now you can start by going upstairs and doing your homework."

"But mum!" Jamie protested.

"You promised you'd try." She reminded him.

"OK," he said reluctantly as he stood up and left the kitchen.

Up in his room, Jamie could still hear Rachel's music booming from next door. He thought about going in and telling her to turn it down but he knew it wouldn't make any difference, and he'd probably get an earful from her as well. He thought about what his mum had said.

"Homework? Pah!" he said allowed as he stared disgustedly at the pile of school books littering his desk. German, Biology, Maths… what was the point? His eyes were drawn to the pile of letters the school had sent to his parents. He took the top one off the pile and ripped open the envelope, interested about what his teachers had to say about him. 

"Dear Mr and Mrs Richardson, We regret to inform you that Rachel's -" he stopped reading allowed as he saw the name on the letter. Rachel. He had thought the letter had been about him, it was the most recent one that had been received. Why was Rachel getting letters sent home? She was an excellent student, as shown by her reports and countless praise at Parent's Evening. Something was wrong. Still holding the letter, Jamie stood up and made his way to Rachel's room. He knocked on the door.

"Rachel," he shouted as he banged hard on the door to make himself heard above the racket.

"Go away," she shouted from within. Jamie ignored her complaints and swung the door open. He marched straight over to her CD player and as he pressed a button on it the room was filled with silence.

"Hey!" she protested.

"What's this," he said, throwing the letter in her face.

"I don't know, why don't you tell me?"

"OK," he began. "It's a letter from school, a complaint from the teachers about your lack of work recently."

"So?" she asked, seeming bored.

"So, you and I both know that you're a great student. The one who always hands her homework in, the one the teachers love."

"Yeah, well maybe I got tired of being teachers pet," she snapped.

"It's more than that, I know it is." Jamie sat on the bed beside her.

"Then let your psychic mind work out what it is, and leave me in peace."

Jamie sighed. He knew he wouldn't get anything more out of her. He stood up and wandered to the door.

"I'll find out eventually, you know."

"Don't count on it," she replied, switching her music back on again as he left the room.


	3. Chapter Three

**Chapter Three**

The next day at school Lewis didn't say a word to Jamie. Jamie noticed but wasn't worried, they'd make up eventually, he thought. But although he wasn't worried, that didn't make his day at school any easier, he sat all his lessons on his own, daydreaming and as usual taking no notice of anything the teachers said. On the way out of his last class, Jamie was approached by Lewis.

"We can't keep going on like this," he said.

"I've been thinking exactly the same thing," Jamie replied. "We've been friends for too long to let this come between us."

"I'd still like you to pay more attention in class though, and try and improve your grades. If your sister can do it you can too." He smiled.

"Actually, for your information I don't think Rachel's the geek she used to be." 

"What makes you say that?"

"Come round later and I'll tell you, I have a mission to carry out now." He said, rather mysteriously.

"Sounds ominous," Lewis said doubtfully. "What are you up to?"

"Can't say," he said, and slipped away silently.

Jamie did have a mission. Unlike Rachel had thought he wasn't psychic and so he decided he would have to find out what was wrong a different way. He had managed to conclude from her changes in mood that school was the problem. What at school, however, he didn't know. So he was going to follow her. Once out of the school gates he spotted his sister immediately. She was standing just along the road with a group of her friends, but to Jamie they didn't look friendly at all. One of them, Athena, Jamie remembered, was laughing, surrounded by Rachel's other friends, three of them, laughing as well. Rachel, however, was not laughing. In fact she was doing the opposite, she looked as though she was about to burst into tears. Jamie edged closer, being careful not to be seen, he knew Rachel wouldn't be pleased if she knew he'd been spying on her. He got close enough so he could here what they were saying, then stopped, listening carefully.

"I thought you were my friends?" she asked, struggling to hold back the tears.

"We were," Athena answered, "Until we realised how pathetic you were."

"Pathetic?" she asked, unable to hold the tears in her eyes any longer.

"Are those tears I see?" Athena snorted. "See, you can't even defend yourself… Pathetic." More tears rolled down Rachel's cheeks and dripped off her chin, falling to the floor simultaneously. Jamie didn't care if Rachel would be angry with him. He had to step in; he couldn't let people who were suppose to be her friends make her cry. The three 'friends' were whispering to each other and giggling, Rachel was standing to one side, a scared look on her face; she had heard the words 'beat up' in their conversation. She had a reason to be scared. Suddenly, with no warning, Athena spun round and her fist made contact with the side of Rachel's face. Athena was strong, and Rachel flew backwards, landing in a heap on the pavement, a red mark forming on the place where she had been hit. Athena would have struck again; only she was grabbed from behind, and soon found herself unable to move. Her capturer was Jamie.

"Wha-" Athena complained as her arm was twisted round her back.

"Jamie!" Rachel shrieked.

"Did you think you could get away with hurting my sister?" Jamie growled. He let go of Athena and spun her round to face him. Her eyes showed no guilt, no shame, just annoyance at being interrupted.

"Well?" he prompted. Athena didn't reply.

"No answer… Interesting. Well know this, you lay your hands on my sister again and I'll ruin that pretty face of yours," he threatened.

"A wimp like you?" she smirked. "Just you try and hurt me."

"Don't tempt me," Jamie growled.

"Come on girls," she beckoned to her followers. "Lets leave the loser and the wimp alone. I'm getting bored."

"Scared?" Jamie asked, grinning.

"I'm not the one who should be scared pretty boy," she replied. "She is," she finished, glancing at Rachel who was still lying on the floor, before striding away confidently with her friends.

"Are you OK?" Jamie asked Rachel once Athena and her gang were out of site.

"I didn't ask for your interference," Rachel snapped, pulling herself to her feet.

"I wasn't going to stand back and watch my little sister getting beaten up was I?" he managed a smile.

"I was in perfect control," she snapped once again.

"From what I could see you weren't the one in control." Jamie was hurt. He had only been trying to help and she was angry with him for doing it.

"I was too!" she shouted. "Next time, stay out of it!" she said, before dashing off, leaving Jamie standing hurt and confused.

When Jamie got home, Lewis was waiting for him outside the door. Wasn't Rachel back? He thought, wondering why he wasn't sitting inside to wait. 

"Where's Rachel?" he asked as he approached his friend.

"How should I know?" Lewis answered, following Jamie into the house once he had unlocked the door.

"She left before I did, I expected her to be here already."

"Rachel?!" Jamie shouted up the stairs. There was no reply. He shouted again. Running up the stairs, he entered her room without knocking. There was no one there. Lewis had followed Jamie upstairs, and personally he thought Jamie was going mad, so he didn't say anything.

"You stay here," Jamie announced. "I'm going to find her," he ran back down the stairs.

"But… why?" Lewis was getting more and more confused by the second, but he didn't get an answer, Jamie had already left the building.


	4. Chapter Four

**Chapter 4**

When Jamie reached home he was surprised to see Lewis perched on the wall outside, dangling his legs and whistling to a tune he'd heard on the radio earlier. He was surprised, because as Rachel had left before him he had expected her to be at home already. Evidently, she wasn't.

"Hey Lewis," he addressed his friend as he approached the house. "Where's Rachel?" he asked.

"How should I know?" Lewis replied. "I've been waiting here for over half an hour, she hasn't been back in that time." Jamie looked at him, his expression becoming panicked, then glanced around up and down the street as if he expected her to be walking down it. However, she wasn't.

"I'm going to find her," Jamie announced eventually.

"Come on mate," Lewis commented. "You promised you'd tell me what your secret mission was."

"I'll tell you when I get back," he answered, and with that, headed back in the direction he had just come in.

"Rachel," he shouted as he wandered along the road where she had disappeared a while before; he couldn't remember when, it seemed an age ago. There was no answer to his shouting and this worried him further. He didn't know for sure that she was here somewhere, but he got the feeling she was, and if she wasn't answering then she must be in trouble.

"Rachel," he shouted again, slightly quieter - he had run all the way and he was now exhausted. There was still no answer. He was about to give up when he noticed something lying on the ground on the pavement; Rachel's school bag. 

"Rachel, where are you?" he shouted once more. There was still no answer and Jamie raced towards the school bag. It was then that he saw her. Lying in a stretch of grass past the pavement, battered and bruised, she laid on the floor unconscious. Jamie wasted no time in getting to her and he kneeled by her side and checked her pulse. He breathed a sigh of relief when he felt one, but knew he had to get help, fast. 

"Help!" he shouted in hope that someone nearby would be able to help. He was lucky, just as soon as he shouted it; a passer-by ran up to greet him. The man who had stopped felt no need to ask what was wrong; he could see it clearly in front of his eyes, and after fishing about in his pocket for a couple of seconds, which felt like hours to Jamie, he took out a mobile phone and dialled 999.

Jamie paced up and down the hospital reception area. It was as if he'd been there days, not hours, waiting for news on his sisters' condition. Every time someone flowed past him, he beckoned to them but it seemed as though they either couldn't or didn't want to tell him. By the time a doctor came out of Rachel's room and approached him he was almost fuming with anger, however, his worry for Rachel meant he immediately calmed down as he spoke to the doctor.

"Is she OK?" Jamie asked frantically.

"She's awake and stable," the doctor smiled.

"So… She's going to be OK?" he asked, relief flowing through him.

"She'll be fine. We'll keep her in over-night just to make sure she's OK and then she can go home… Have you called your parents?"

"Yeah I have. Thank you so much," Jamie smiled. "Can I see her?"

"Sure go ahead," the doctor replied before wandering off to see another patient.

Jamie peered round the door. Rachel was sitting in bed, stitches holding together a cut on her cheek. She smiled as he walked in and sat down.

"Thanks," she said. "Thanks for coming to look for me."

"It's OK, I wasn't going to leave you was I? I knew as soon as I got home that Athena had been back again."

"Athena?" she asked. "What makes you think it was her?"

"Oh come off it! I'm not stupid you know. I know it was her. I'm right aren't I?!" Rachel nodded slowly, confirming what he had said.

"I knew it!" I'm going to call the police, right now!" he exclaimed.

"No!" she objected. "It's more trouble than it's worth."

"I don't care!" he announced. "I'm not going to let them get away with it." With his last statement, he stormed out of the room, not waiting to hear any more of Rachel's complaints.


	5. Chapter Five

**Chapter 5**

When Jamie returned to Rachel's room, his parents had arrived. He had called the police as he had promised, and they were on their way to the hospital. Rachel glared at him coldly as he entered the room, but as he felt what he had done would make things better he ignored it and smiled at her; she didn't return it.

"Jamie!" his mum exclaimed. "There you are! Thank you so much for calling us, isn't it just awful!"

"Yes, mum. It is," he replied. It didn't seem to him that Rachel had told them what had happened yet. So he prompted.

"So Rachel," he began. "What happened?"

"I was walking back from school, the same way I usually do. It was deserted, unusual for that time of day. Two boys, about 17 or 18 years old tried to take my bag, but I wouldn't give it them. So they beat me up, took my purse from my bag and ran off… Then I don't remember anything."

Jamie was disgusted. He had expected Rachel to tell their parents exactly what was going on, but she had lied. He couldn't remember the last time she had done that.

"Oh darling!" her mum said. "That's awful. We have to call the police," she stood up.

"No!" Jamie butted in. "I mean, I've already called them. They're on their way."

"Oh good," their father spoke for the first time. "Thanks Jamie."

"No problem," he replied. "I want to catch the scum who did this." He meant Athena and her group, but somehow he didn't think Rachel would be willing to tell them about it. If she could lie to her parents, surely she could lie to the police.

"We're just going to get something to drink," their father said. "Stay with your sister for a while will you?" he asked Jamie.

"Yeah cause," he said as they left the room.

"Why did you call the police?" Rachel spoke as soon as their parents had gone.

"Because something had to be done, and they're the only people who can do anything."

"You know this is just going to make things ten times worse don't you?" Rachel asked. "If they hear that I called the police my life won't be worth living."

"If they hear that you called the police, then they'll know you're not a wimp and they'll lay off you!"

"That's not going to happen," Rachel said. "I know them better than you."

"Maybe. But I know that I'm right." But even as he said it, he was beginning to doubt how much he was convincing himself.

It was an hour later when two policemen knocked on the door of the room Rachel was in, and then without waiting for a reply wandered in, as if they had every right to do so.

"Rachel Richardson?" one of the policemen said formally.

"Yeah," Rachel replied. "That's me."

"We'd like to ask you a few questions about your attack if that's alright," the policeman who hadn't spoken yet said.

"That's fine," she said, glancing at Jamie who was glaring at her, attempting to make sure she told the truth. However the look in her eyes told him she wasn't planning on it.

"When did the attack happen?"

"About four hours ago, just about anyway."

"Do you know who attacked you?" the policeman asked a second question. This was the critical moment; would Rachel tell the truth?

"I've seen them around," Rachel said; Jamie's hopes sank. "But I don't know them personally. From what I can see it was a random mugging." She finished.

"And what did they look like?"

"They were boys, about aged 17 or 18… That's all I can remember."

"OK, that's all for now," the policeman said. "We'll be back if we need any more information from you." They walked out of the room, and Rachel relaxed, glad to have gotten the Interview over with. Jamie, however, was not so relaxed. He wasn't happy with what Rachel had done, but he knew if she was determined he couldn't do much about it.

Jamie tossed and turned all night. Did he do the right thing? He thought. He thought it would have made things better, but Rachel said it would make things worse. He was so confused; he was only trying to do the right thing. And she had lied to the police, wasn't that an offence? By the time he woke up the next morning he knew what the answer was. He had done the right thing by calling them, and they had to know the truth. He hesitated before dialling the number of the local police station on the phone.

"Hello," he said. "I have some information on Rachel Richardson's attack." He spoke calmly, knowing he was doing what was right for everyone.


	6. Chapter Six

**Chapter 6**

It was madness. Jamie had often wondered how rumours travelled so quickly, but he never thought his sister would be in the centre of these rumours. But she was, and the news that she'd been attacked was round half of the school by the time he got there this morning. But it wasn't just that. Through the whispers he heard, he found out something else. Athena and her friends had been taken to the police station for questioning. Someone he didn't even know skipped away from her group of friends and bounded towards him, joining him as he walked through the school.

"Are you Rachel's sister?" she asked, curiously.

"Yes I am… why?" he asked although he could already predict the answer.

"Has Athena got something to do with her attack?" she asked.

"No," he said bluntly.

"No?" she answered, confused. "But I figured -"

"Well you figured wrong!" he growled. "Now leave me alone!"

"I was only asking!" she said angrily as she skipped back to her friends.

Jamie continued. The same thing happened again and again as he wandered through the school, and every time he denied the rumours about Athena being involved with Rachel's attack. By the time he got to his classroom he was red with annoyance. Lewis was there already, and spoke as soon as Jamie got to his seat.

"Is it true?" he asked.

"Not you as well! I've just had this from half the school on the way here!"

"And what did you tell them?"

"Not now," Jamie whispered. "I'll tell you later." Lewis wasn't happy about being the last to know the truth. What he didn't know, though, was that he would be the only person who was told the truth.

When Jamie arrived home after a long and infuriating day at school, Rachel was sitting on the sofa, drinking tea out of a mug. She pounced on him as soon as he had put his bag down.

"Have the police been in touch?" she asked, nervously.

"No," Jamie lied. "They haven't."

"Good!" Rachel exclaimed. "I still haven't forgiven you for calling them."

"I thought it was for the best," he admitted.

"Well it wasn't… I just know something bad is going to happen," she replied.

Jamie sat down next to her on the sofa. She had the TV on. He wanted to talk to her about the bullying so he took the remote and turned the television off before turning to face her.

"Why didn't you tell me?" he asked straight out.

"About what?" she asked although she knew what he was getting at.

"Don't play dumb," he rolled his eyes. "You know what I'm talking about."

"I thought it would die down," she began. "And I was right. It has started to."

"Is that the truth? Or you just trying to stop me worrying?" he asked.

"It's the truth. I promise," she replied.

"Good," he said. "I didn't like my little sister being upset."

"I am NOT your little sister!" she exploded.

"OK, OK, calm down!" Jamie said, shocked.

"Sorry," she replied. "I just don't like being called 'little'," she explained. "I'm going to my room now. I've got homework to catch up on."

"OK then," Jamie said. "And Rachel… Keep the music down will you?"

The phone rang. It startled Jamie, he was sitting right next to it. He let its shrill ring continue for a couple of seconds and then picked it up.

"Hello," he said in his most formal voice.

"Hi, it's John Martin, the police officer. We're ringing for Rachel Richardson, about her attack. "

"She's… not in at the moment," he lied. "I'm her brother."

"You're the one who called right? Well the current situation is that we had to let Athena and her friends go."

"What?!" Jamie exclaimed. "But they were the ones who attacked her!"

"We have no evidence to suggest that they did it, and they haven't admitted to it," the police officer explained. "We'll let you know if anything comes up."

"OK," Jamie replied, disappointed. "Bye," he said as he replaced the receiver. He sat back on the sofa, deep in thought. He realised he had done the wrong thing. He had been so wrapped up in vengeance that he hadn't given a thought to what would happen if they were released. Suddenly he was scared for Rachel. He knew what would happen when she got to school. He realised what an idiot he'd been. But it was too late.


	7. Chapter Seven

**Chapter 7**

"I have to go to school," Rachel was saying as Jamie descended the stairs. "I have work to do."

"I'm not sure dear," their mother said. "You should take a couple more days off."

"I feel fine," she protested. "I want to go back."

"Are you sure," their dad asked.

"I'll be fine. Don't worry."

"OK then. If you really want to go then you can."

"Thanks mum, dad," she smiled for the first time in ages. As they left the room Jamie entered the room.

"I'm not going to let you go," he said bluntly.

"And why not?" she asked as he sat down.

"I'm worried," he replied. Rachel looked at him and rolled her eyes slowly.

"I can take care of myself," she said defensively.

"I know I know… but- OK you can go, but be careful OK?"

"Cause I will," she replied. However, he wasn't convinced. He had another mission. He was going to look out for her, make sure she was all right.

"Jamie Richardson?" the teacher's voice boomed across the classroom. "If I have to tell you one more time you'll be in detention for a week." Jamie's eyes appeared to be looking at a page of a book on his desk; however, his mind was somewhere completely different. He was worried about his sister. Although he wished he could get out of classes, he knew it wasn't a good idea to have another pile of letters sent home to his parents. But the bullies were in most of her classes, and he didn't think Athena would be put off by the fact that there were teachers present. It would be something subtle, tripping her up as she walked to her seat, whispering abuse across the classroom. But it was still effective.

"Jamie," Lewis, who was sitting beside his friend, nudged his elbow to get his attention.

"What?" Jamie asked, annoyed, rubbing his elbow.

"What's the matter with you today?" Lewis asked. "You're even more out of it than usual!"

"Nothing's the matter," Jamie replied. "I'm just tired."

"Tired?!" he exclaimed. "That's the excuse people who don't want to give the real excuse!" Jamie looked at him and rolls his eyes slowly.

"Since when did you know everything?"

"I don't know everything, I just know you," he replied, smiling.

"I'll tell you later," Jamie promised, although he wasn't sure he should upset Rachel any further.

Jamie spotted Rachel as he stepped out of his last class. She was swinging her bag backwards and forwards, and looked happy. Jamie smiled, if she was happy that meant he had been worrying all day for nothing. It looked like the bullying hadn't been as bad. He wanted to go up to her, see her smiling face close up and give her a big hug, but his mission had to continue. So, keeping in shadow as much as possible, he followed her home.

"Rachel?" Jamie shouted as he walked into the house after following her at a safe distance all the way there. As he walked into the living room he saw her, she was sitting on the sofa with the TV on, however it was turned so low that she couldn't possible hear it. As she looked up and noticed him, she stood up swiftly and ran up the stairs without saying a word. Jamie was speechless. He stood there for a couple of minutes, not moving. When she had turned her head, he had noticed, that they were wet with tears. She's been happy before. What had happened? 

"Rachel?" he shouted, running up the stairs after her. She had gone into her room and turned up her music loud. He knocked loudly on the door, so hard that the door vibrated and threatened to crash to the floor. However, Rachel didn't answer. Following his usual pattern, he opened the door to the room gently and walked in, turning the music off much to Rachel's annoyance.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, not looking up at him. "Don't people knock anymore?"

"I did knock!" Jamie protested. "But obviously you were either ignoring me or you couldn't hear anything except your damn music!"

"I ask again… what are you doing here?" Rachel had stopped crying, but her eyes were red, revealing that she had been earlier.

"I want to know what's wrong," he replied.

"Why? So you can go and tell the police that Athena's been hassling me again?" she asked bitterly.

"You know about that?"

"Do you think it'd just blow over? Did you think she wouldn't mention it to me?"

"Well I guess I did…" he muttered.

"Then you thought wrong."

"I'm… I'm sorry," he muttered.

"Get out and leave me alone," she said simply.

"Oh… OK," Jamie replied. "But I will find out you know," he said as he wandered out of the room calmly. And he swore he would, somehow he would find out why one minute she had been smiling and the next her face was covered with tears.


	8. Chapter Eight

**Chapter 8**

"Right," Lewis said, placing his calculator on the desk, a relieved look on his face. "We're done with the maths."

"Thank God for that!" Jamie exclaimed. "Maths sucks!"

"Everything sucks according to you," Lewis grinned.

"Well maybe that's because I'd rather be doing more interesting things with my time!" Jamie replied as he took the books off his bed and threw them on the floor in a careless manner. He didn't care less whether they got ruined or not, it could do him a favour.

"What's up with your sister lately anyway?" Lewis asked. "She's been really moody lately."

"Nothing," Jamie said protectively. "There's nothing wrong with her,"

"Come on mate, you can tell me. It's not as if I'm likely to spread it round the whole world or anything." Jamie pondered for a moment. It should be safe, he thought. Rachel wouldn't mind him telling his best friend, would she?

"She's just been getting a bit of hassle at school," he replied eventually.

"Hassle?" Lewis replied. "You mean she's being bullied? But I thought she was really popular."

"She is, and I get the feeling that's the problem," Jamie said.

"It's Athena isn't it?" Lewis suddenly spoke. "I knew there was something strange going on when they were taken to the police station."

"Yeah, it's her," he replied simply, having guessed that he would know already. "I think it's getting better though," he spoke again. "She seemed happier yesterday when she was coming back from school."

"That's good," Lewis replied. "Before you know it, she'll be back to her old happy popular self."

"I hope so," Jamie replied. And he did, he wanted to see a real smile on Rachel's face and he couldn't see that happening until Athena and her friends were out of the picture.

"You fancy going for a walk?" Lewis asked. "I could do with some fresh air after all that hard work."

"Sounds good," he said. "Anything to get away from that music."

Ten minutes later Lewis and Jamie were walking away from the house. Although they were a fair way away they could still hear the droning beats of Rachel's music.

"She sure plays it loud doesn't she?" Lewis commented.

"She never used to," Jamie replied. "Apparently it's a way of 'venting her anger'."

"Yeah I can imagine," Lewis said, passing the can he had been kicking along the street to Jamie, who caught it with his foot and propelled it into the air. Watching it fall, he was shocked to see that it was about to land on someone sitting on a wall ahead of them. Athena. As the can bounced off her head, she screamed and looked into the air, trying to find the offending object. Upon seeing nothing, her gaze turned to the two boys coming towards them.

"Well look who it is," Athena smirked. "The wimp and his little friend."

"Watch it Athena," Jamie growled. "I meant what I said last week." Lewis stepped back, afraid of what was going to happen.

"And let me guess," she said. "You've brought your friend to help? Well I hate to tell you wimp but he looks like he's about to run away." Jamie glanced over at Lewis who was giving him a dirty look, as if telling him to leave before he did something he regretted. But Jamie wasn't leaving.

"Stay away from my sister," he said more bravely than he was.

"Why should I?" Athena said, standing up. She was almost a foot taller than Jamie.

"Because she doesn't deserve it. Rachel is a fantastic person and she doesn't deserve to have bitches like you putting her down."

"You hear that girls?" Athena grinned. "She doesn't deserve to have bitches like us putting her down." The girls laughed almost manically. 

"And you two?" Jamie continued. "You're just mindless followers who don't have the brains to get on by yourself." Lewis was still standing back, he was even smaller than Jamie and had decided that Athena could beat him to a pulp if she wanted to. The girls were beginning to surround Jamie, but Athena wasn't joining in. She appeared to be enjoying her 'mindless followers' beginning to scare Jamie, and she was happy watching them doing so. Jamie was pretending not to be scared by the girls' behaviour but he was beginning to realise that talking back to them hadn't been such a good idea. Making a swift decision, he spun round and pushed one of the girls out of the way.

"Lewis!" he shouted. "Run!" He watched Lewis race down the road.

"Later Athena," he said, before swiftly following his friend down the road. Behind him he could vaguely hear Athena's shouts.

"I'll get you, wimp!" she screamed at the top of the voice, but Jamie was too far away to hear her.


	9. Chapter Nine

**Chapter 9**

"Jamie calm down!" Lewis shouted as they walked through the door of the house. "It isn't worth getting worked up over."

"Isn't is?" Jamie said as he followed Lewis into the kitchen. "They think they're better than us!"

"So?!" Lewis exclaimed. "Who cares?" Lewis poured a drink for Jamie who was red in the face. He passed it over and Jamie gulped it down, finishing it only a second after he had started.

"You can't do anything about it now, so just forget it," Lewis said. They fell silent. Jamie was beginning to calm down slowly, and as his breathing got slower and slower he was able to hear what was going on around him, and he noticed something. Rachel's music was still playing. This wouldn't have been unusual if he could hear the beats vibrating his ears, but the music that was playing now had no beat, or at least none as such. It was one of those songs that would bring tears to the eyes of even the toughest of people. Jamie listened to the lyrics for a few minutes.

_Well, everybody hurts_

_Sometimes_

_Everybody cries_

_And everybody hurts_

_Sometimes_

Jamie found himself realising how appropriate this song was to Rachel at the moment. But just because it was appropriate didn't mean it wasn't unusual, and the style of music that was playing was a far cry to the anger venting tunes she had been playing when they had left the house. This worried him, and from the expression Lewis had on his face, he was worried as well. They stood up almost simultaneously and raced towards the source of the music. They didn't reach the bedroom. Jamie's eyes were drawn to something wrapped round the banister running up the side of the stairs. A rope. He followed the rope along, and soon wished he hadn't when he noticed what it was attached to. Rachel's face had a blue tint to it, and her neck, which the rope was wrapped round, was at a sickening angle. Jamie didn't need to check her pulse to know that there wouldn't be one. She was dead, that was obvious.

"Jamie," Lewis spoke. "Jamie… You should call your parents." Jamie didn't answer. He continued to stare in the direction of where Rachel was lying. Then he slumped to the floor and tears begun to roll from his eyes.

"It's my sister…" he mumbled. "That's my sister… Rachel? Rachel, wake up."

"She's not going to wake up Jamie."

"She's just sleeping," he mumbled again. "She'll wake up if I call her."

"Jamie, come on," Lewis said softly. "Come and sit in the kitchen."

"No!" Jamie shouted. "I'm staying here. I've got to tell her that we hit that ***** on the head with a can - it'll make her laugh."

"Jamie, come and sit in the kitchen while I call your parents," Lewis prompted, tears forming in the corners of his eyes.

"OK," Jamie said. "OK, but you've got to tell me when she wakes up."

"I'll tell you," Lewis said. "I promise."


	10. Chapter Ten

**Chapter 10**

Jamie looked up as he heard someone walking towards the kitchen.

"Rachel?" he called. "Rachel is that you?" As Lewis wandered into the room Jamie looked back down at the table.

"Lewis. Is she awake yet?" he asked.

"No," he sat down opposite Jamie and sighed. "Jamie. I can't do this anymore. Rachel isn't waking up. You know that don't you?" Jamie didn't answer. He knew Lewis was right, he just couldn't admit it, not to himself or anyone else. However Jamie's expression and the tears now dripping onto the table answered Lewis's question. 

"Your parents will be arriving soon," Lewis said. 

"So she's not awake yet?" Jamie asked.

"No," Lewis sighed.

"OK, make sure you tell me when she does."

"I will do."

Lewis left the room, leaving Jamie alone. He couldn't bear to be with him any longer. He knew it wasn't his fault, he was in shock, but someone had to be in control and if Lewis stayed any longer then he would end up in the same state. As he left the room Jamie's parents raced into the house. Oh great, Lewis thought. Having to deal with them was the last thing he wanted to do. But he had to, he realised. If he didn't, no one else would do.

"Lewis!" Jamie's mum shrieked. "Where's Jamie? Where's Rachel? What's happened?!"

Lewis sighed deeply before speaking. "Jamie's in the kitchen… and Rachel… Mrs Richardson, Rachel's… dead."

"Dead?!" Mrs. Richardson gasped. "How?! When?!"

"It was probably about an hour ago and she… she killed herself," Lewis replied solemnly. Mr and Mrs Richardson gasped at once, and Lewis led them to where Rachel was laying. Leaving them alone with their grief, he returned to his friend in the kitchen.

"Has she woken up yet?" Jamie asked as soon as he entered the room.

"No Jamie she hasn't," Lewis sighed. There was no point saying anything else, it didn't make any difference. He was in too much shock to accept that she was gone. He sat down with him; he could use the company, he decided. Jamie looked such a mess. Tears were pouring down his face; it was like his tears knew she was dead even if he didn't. His eyes were red from crying. Lewis had never seen him like this before, and it scared him. How long would it take for him to accept that she wasn't coming back?

Rachel's body was removed from the house as swiftly as possible. None of the family wanted it to be there any longer. Once it had gone, Lewis thought, Jamie would begin to accept it more. Sitting at the kitchen table once again, he realised that Jamie had disappeared; he wasn't sitting with him any more. Lewis wondered when he could have possibly got away, but he realised he'd probably been so deep in thought that he just hadn't noticed.

"Jamie?" he shouted. He walked towards the stairs and realised that there was music coming from upstairs. Instead of the slow painful music that had been flowing down the stairs earlier, the beats were back. He realised Jamie must have put it on. As he walked up the stairs he had to cover his ears to stop the music penetrating them. He walked into Rachel's room. Jamie was walking backwards and forwards picking things up from the floor and putting them on shelves, in cupboards or wherever he found it appropriate. 

"Jamie?" Lewis spoke. "What are you doing?"

"I'm tidying Rachel's room for when she gets back," he replied, still tidying. Now he lifted her duvet from the bed and gave it a shake. As he shook it, a piece of paper flew off it and floated slowly to the ground. Jamie put the duvet back on the bed neatly and picked up the note from the floor. 

"Jamie, make mum and dad proud. Goodbye. Rachel," he read aloud. Grasping the paper in his hand he sunk down to the bed, tears coming to his eyes.

"She's dead," he murmured. "She isn't coming back."

"No," Lewis said, shaking his head. "She isn't." Jamie looked dazed for a second; staring at the note Rachel had left him. The tears in his eyes began to roll down his cheeks, and he began to shake. He put his head in his hand and wept. Lewis was uncomfortable and didn't know what to do. For a moment he just stood there and watched the boy who earlier had been so tough, now breaking down. Then he seated himself beside him on the bed, and placed a sympathetic hand on his shoulder. Then they sat, as if time was standing still, best friends, one helping the other, just like friends were supposed to.


	11. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

_It was a month later when Jamie next walked through the school gate, and yet people were still talking. Athena was gone, the school had expelled her right after they realised what had happened. Jamie smiled as he walked right by the place she used to hang out. Standing there, almost cowering, were the people who had once stood by her side; without her, they were nothing. _

_"Hi," Lewis said, approaching Jamie and walking along side him._

_"Hi," Jamie replied, still smiling._

_"How are you?" Lewis asked._

_"It's…weird," he said. "I keep expecting to bump into Athena somewhere."_

_"Well you're not going to," Lewis smiled. "She's not coming back."_

_"I still can't get over seeing her at the funeral. The nerve of that girl!"_

_"I guess she felt more guilty than anyone," Lewis said solemnly._

_"Athena? Guilty? You mean she actually had a heart?"_

_"Maybe, maybe no one ever looked close enough."_

_"I still can't imagine it."_

_As they walked into class, the teacher looked up from his desk and smiled._

_"Jamie, can I have a word?" he called across the class. Jamie looked worried for a moment, and sidled slowly up to the teacher._

_"I want to say how impressed I was with the quality of the work you did while you were away," he said. Jamie was shocked._

_"Oh… err… thanks," he replied, blushing slightly._

_"I have to say I'm pleased you've decided that doing school work is beneficial."_

_"I had to do it," Jamie replied. "I have to make mum and dad proud of me," he paused for a moment. "For Rachel's sake."_


End file.
